September 10, 2009

Kunming Konnection

China is one of the few places on Earth where you can go to a city that has a population of 6 million to experience the small town feeling. I also went to Kunming for the clean air, moderate temperature, and noodles. Wherever I ventured in the city, I was surprised to see people of all ages interacting with each other. In the parks, the masses were dancing in synchronization to loud music. A popular form of exercise, no one seemed to be embarrased by the moves they were pulling off. In Beijing, the youth and elders do not visibly hang out at the same venues. In Kunming, this did not seem to be an issue as the generations mixed freely. Old folks played mahjong while their grandchildren practiced their slick rollerskating moves nearby.

With a three day holiday in my first week of work at my new job, I flew to the other end of China. Kunming is in the south while Beijing translates to "North Capital". The townspeople kept a safe distance from me the first day, but by the end of my visit they had become accustomed to having the Indo-Canadian temptation walk among them. An eager set of parents brought their shy 7 year old daughter to practice her spoken English with me. A plain looking girl also came up to me excitedly and greeted me as if I knew her. Eventually I figured out that I had gone to Shilin with her on the same bus the previous day. The City of Eternal Spring was a good place to escape the hustle and bustle of Beijing for a few days, but I soon had to return to the capital to continue building my promising career.

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"There is only one way in which one can endure man's inhumanity to man and that is to try, in one's own life, to exemplify man's humanity to man."